Roberta Staley wrote Voice of Rebellion: How Mozhdah Jamalzadah brought hope to Afghanistan (Greystone 2019) about the Afghani-Canadian pop singer, and champion of women's rights. Despite many threats to her life, Mozhdah Jamalzadah remains a female voice against repression for her generation in Afghanistan, speaking out about women's rights. Voice of Rebellion charts her journey, including arriving in Canada as a child refugee, setting her father's protest poem to music (and making it a #1 hit), performing that song for Michelle and Barack Obama, and, finally, being invited to host her own show in Afghanistan. The Mozhdah Show earned her the nickname "The Oprah of Afghanistan" and tackled taboo subjects like divorce and domestic violence for the first time in the country's history. Traversing Central Asia and North America, Voice of Rebellion profiles a devoted singer and activist who continues to fight for change, even from afar.

Roberta Staley is a magazine editor, writer, and documentary filmmaker. She has reported from Afghanistan, El Salvador, Haiti, Cambodia, Israel, and more countries around the world. Her award-winning documentary, Mightier Than the Sword, reveals how Afghan women in media are working to overcome a culture of silence and invisibility.

Voice of Rebellion: How Mozhdah Jamalzadah brought hope to Afghanistan (Greystone 2019) $32.95 978-1-77164-413-6

[BCBW 2019]